Monarch Festival at Love Creek Nature Center!

Join us at Love Creek Nature Center for our 2nd annual Monarch Festival. Spend the afternoon enjoying crafts, and snacks and learning about monarch butterflies and other beneficial pollinators.

We have some amazing presenters, educational booths, a monarch release, and lots of activities lined up throughout the afternoon. The first 20 kids to arrive will have the opportunity for a FREE face painting!

 Check-in and register at the front desk.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

11:00 a.m. -11:30 a.m. - Beekeeping for Beginners with Cassie Coleman Cassie is a Beekeeper for Willie’s Honey Company out of Northern Illinois. In this Beekeeping overview, she will discuss equipment, where to get bees, why they’re important, and what her duties include as a professional beekeeper.

11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. - Insect ID with Dr. Adam Baker This presentation will give the audience a basic-level introduction to insect ID and examples of some of the insects you can find in your backyard.

12:15 p.m. -12:45 p.m. - Bug Catching in the Prairie! Grab a net and follow us to the prairie to catch and identify a few bugs just outside the nature center! Guided by Dr. Adam Baker and Love Creek staff.

1:00 p.m. -1:45 p.m. - Mammals can be Pollinators Too. With Sloths and Sugar Gliders! Join Amanda Brunson-Cruz, Curator of Education with the Potawatomi Zoo, as she gives you an up-close look at these furry pollinators! Did you know that sloths support biodiversity through a mutualistic relationship with moths in a way that is similar to pollinators and plants? Stay tuned as Amanda discusses the unusual life cycle of these two fascinating creatures.

2:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - The Strenuous, yet Fascinating Life Cycle and Migration of the Monarch Butterfly. Join Dr. Adam Baker as he discusses the complex and fascinating lifecycle of the iconic monarch butterfly. We will learn more about the utilization of their host plant (milkweeds), pressures that influence populations, and their spectacular annual migration.

2:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Monarch Butterfly Release! For the chance to release a monarch butterfly, you must enter the random drawing at the front desk before 2:30 pm. The number of monarchs to be released will be unknown until the day of the event. We hope for at least 15. The drawing and release will immediately follow the last presentation.

Educational Booths and Activities:

• CRAFTS, SNACKS AND BOOKS!
• Berrien County Great Start Family Coalition
• Berrien County Conservation District
• Sarett Nature Center
• Kalamazoo Wild Ones
• Andrews University Museum of Nature & Science
• Willie’s Honey Company
• Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
• Chikaming Open Lands
• Fernwood Botanical Gardens
• FREE Cookies (While supplies last)

Admission: Free